Try: If you need oxygen therapy at home it is important to learn how to use it and take care of your equipment this information will help you get the most from your oxygen therapy key points breathing extra oxygen can help you feel better and lead a more active life you can travel even though you use oxygen but you will need to plan ahead oxygen is a fire hazard it is important to follow safety measures to keep you and your family safe oxygen therapy is a way to increase the amount of oxygen in the lungs and the bloodstream it is sometimes used for people with diseases that make it hard to breathe such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease copd cystic fibrosis or heart failure oxygen therapy can make it easier to breathe and reduce the heart’s workload some people need extra oxygen all the time others need it from time to time throughout the day or overnight a doctor will prescribe how much oxygen you need based on blood tests he or she will tell you how much oxygen to use per minute flow rate and how often to use it to breathe the oxygen most people use a nasal cannula say kan-yuh-luh a thin tube with two prongs that fit inside your nostrils children and people who need high levels of oxygen may need to use a mask that fits over the nose and mouth oxygen can be delivered to your home in tanks or cylinders or it can be produced in your home by a machine called an oxygen concentrator your doctor will help you choose the source that fits your needs a combination of methods may be the best choice some people use an oxygen concentrator at home keep a large oxygen tank on hand as a backup and have small tanks for use outside the home oxygen tanks oxygen in tanks comes in two forms compressed oxygen gas tanks of oxygen gas come in several sizes small tanks can be carried when you leave home large tanks are heavy and are usually not moved after they are placed in the home liquid oxygen oxygen takes up less space in liquid form than as a gas compared to tanks of oxygen gas tanks of liquid oxygen weigh less and hold more oxygen so they may be a good choice for people who are active oxygen concentrators oxygen concentrators are machines that take in regular air which is about 21 oxygen remove the other gases and produce oxygen that is up to 95 pure most oxygen concentrators are about the size of a kitchen garbage can and weigh from 30 lb to 50 lb oxygen concentrators don’t need to be refilled like oxygen tanks do so they may cost less and be more convenient but unlike an oxygen tank an oxygen concentrator runs on electricity so you will need an oxygen tank as a backup in case the power goes out portable oxygen concentrators are oxygen concentrators which have rechargeable internal batteries portable oxygen concentrators are lightweight and can be charged at home or in the car with the car charger option after charging portable oxygen concentrators can be used depending on setting for up to about 8 hours when traveling contact your airline and make sure that portable oxygen concentrators are allowed on the flight some airlines accept certain manufacturer’s oxygen concentrators and not others information references "respiratory care help" 2008 by sherman oaks medical supplies available at www shermanoaksmedical com
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Keywords: Respiratory care oxygen oxygen concentration oxygen mask oxygen therapy portable oxygen
*This information is listed as a Fact Sheet and is not explicitly medically licensed